Emil

“Rival” — Latin via German origin

Boy's name · #1267 in the US (2025) · Vintage

Emil has appeared in US records since 1880 — best rank #90 (1881) · 33,096 babies named Emil all-time · 1 in 11,000 boys born in 2025.

Around the world: #2 in Finland (Swedish-sp.) (2025) · #2 in Norway (2025) · #5 in Germany (2025) · #7 in Finland (Finnish-sp.) (2025) · #16 in Austria (2025).

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 11 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Famous Emils

Emil von Behring — German physiologist who received the first Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1901 for his discovery of a diphtheria antitoxin
Emil Cioran — Romanian-French philosopher and essayist (1911–1995)
Emil Theodor Kocher — surgeon, laureate of the 1909 Nobel Prize in Medicine (1841-1917)
Emil Zátopek — Czech long-distance runner (1922-2000)
Emil Jannings — German actor (1884-1950)

In stories & tradition

Emil Svensson — Emil from Lönneberga · That Boy Emil
Emil (Abomination) — Tales to Astonish
Emil Eagle — Mickey Mouse universe

What Emils become

Among 5,693 notable people named Emil:

Business leaders appear 2.19× more often than among typical names — e.g. Emil Škoda, Bohemian engineer and industrialist (1839-1900).

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